(Fort Wayne, Ind.) – Do it Best Corp. ended its 2007 fiscal year with a 3.4 percent increase in overall profitability. “This year, Do it Best Corp. posted a 4.4 percent increase in sales through distribution and our team and our member-owners were able to drive the most positive bottom-line performance in our company’s sixty-two year history,” said Bob Taylor, Do it Best Corp. president and CEO.
The co-op also reported they will be returning a record-setting $126.2 million rebate to its member-owners. “What makes this even more impressive is that this was accomplished in the face of a challenging housing market, softness in some regional economies and continued high fuel prices. Once again, our team’s ability to control expenses and increase productivity has been a key factor in controlling overhead and helping us maintain our position as the most efficient co-op in the industry.” While unit sales increased over the past fiscal year, an unprecedented deflation in lumber and panel pricing contributed to an 8 percent gross sales decrease to $2.81 billion.
Operating overhead for the company was just 2.0 percent, the lowest in the industry.
For the past 24 years, Do it Best Corp. rebates on regular warehouse purchases to its members have exceeded 12 percent. The fiscal year 2007 rebate, which will be returned to members at the 2007 Do it Best October MarketSM, represents a Classic Rebate averaging 13.13 percent of regular warehouse purchases.
“By providing our member-owners with innovative programs to increase their performance at retail, and by continuing our relentless focus on improving operational efficiency, we have been able to return a consistently high year-end rebate to help our members reinvest in and grow their independent businesses,” said Taylor.
The co-op continued their retail focus this year with investments in important retail programs like their Do it Best Signature™ Store Design Program, a performance-focused store design format that provides a modern, more visually integrated shopping environment and RetailSTART!®, a program that helps member-owners make informed decisions on determining when and where to add new locations.
In an ever-changing business climate, a co-op’s consistency and stability are very important to members. Their rock solid financial foundation, freedom from long-term debt, consistently low cost of operations and high year-end rebates provide their member-owners with an opportunity for profitability in today’s competitive retail market. “As we begin this fiscal year, we take pride in our consistent financial strength, stability and bottom-line performance. We are confident in the dedication of our staff. And we are confident in the entrepreneurial spirit of our member-owners to grow their businesses,” added Taylor.
Based in Fort Wayne, Ind., Do it Best Corp. is the only U.S.-based, member-owned hardware, lumber and building materials buying cooperative in the home improvement industry and has been in operation since 1945. With annual sales of $2.81 billion, Do it Best Corp. is the second largest co-op in the industry, serving 4,100 member-owners in the United States and in 47 foreign countries. |
